Transit shelters provide covered areas for passengers waiting for transportation, for example, a bus or a train. It is desirable to provide waiting passengers with protection from the elements, such as wind and precipitation, as well as to provide safety by providing a lighted area. Additionally, it is desirable to have transit shelters that blend into the urban setting and that may be placed at any location within a city without detracting from the surrounding area. Transit shelters that maintain their pleasing appearance over time and that do not require continual maintenance, such as painting or refinishing, are also advantageous.
In typical prior art shelters and the most secure and aesthetically pleasing structure has traditionally included a rear wall, one or two side walls and a partial front wall supporting a roof structure. This supplies shelter from wind and rain from nearly all sides. Shelters are typically scant structures, both for economic and aesthetic purposes. Often, in hurricane-prone or high-wind locations, structural damage may occur with prior art structures.
Transit shelters also may be used for advertising displays. In prior art structures, one of the walls of the shelter to attract the attention of waiting customers. Lighted advertising displays are especially advantageous for an income revenue stream for the shelter owner to defray the cost of the shelter. The displays also provide light for the shelter for increased safety and to deter theft and vandalism. However, providing conventional lighting in shelters in urban and rural areas is expensive because a permanent power supply must be linked to each shelter. Therefore, an alternative energy source, such as solar energy, to provide a self-contained lighted shelter is highly desirable.
Thus, a need exists to provide a transit shelter that also is hurricane wind resistant and maintains its integrity and appeal over time after repeated exposure to the elements and further provides a self-contained lighting source.